Spring nut-lock.



F. E. SPENCER.

SPRING NUT LOCK.

.APPLICATION FILED MAR, 28, I9l4 Patented Jam 1, 1918 /4" wrrmzssas.

TED STATES P TESTOFFIQE a Fama'asnacm; or 'rnomvisuae, rnwnsvtvmvm, V v I To all whom iii-may concern; l j

citizen o f'the'United States, and 'resident 'of" Thornbui'g, in the county of'Allegheny and State ofPe'nn sylvania, have invented a' new and usefullmprov'ement' inSpring Nut Locks; and I 'do hereby declare the follow and exact description I body member is'of uniform' thickness ing to bea full, clear,

thereof, g Y,

My invention'relates to nut'locks and is particularly concerned with improvements in the form of'nut locks set forth in my copending pplicatio n,v "Serial INo. filed Octoberl4j1912.

lVhile thelocking ribs ,orjshoulde r's BXQ, tending along oppositesidesof"that nut re-i' ceiving washer have proved most effective in'holding thenuttight, it is'also found that in some instances the lower edges ofth'e 'nut I "at the corners are unduly worn away in rid ing over these ribs. I havefound inpractice that it is possible to clispen'se'with" certain portions of these ribsor shoulders, thereby facilitatingtheturning "of "the nut into 7 locking position, without detriment to the. looking action, while at the same timefthefwear on the corners of the nutis greatly reduced and practically eliminated.

A further object of the 'inventionfis ea; shape the body portion of the washer as to facilitate the passage of the nut over the locking ribs, and to provide a washer of a shape which may be cut from a strip of rolled material which may be economically and easily produced. Furthermore, the shape of the washer, as hereinafter described, has the advantage that when the nut :is screwed home, the under face of the washer will lie flat against the part to be secured, and at the same time the washer will not readily break when the nut is tightened.

In the drawings which illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention, Figure '1 is a fragmentary side view of a rail joint showing the invention applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a transverse section on Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view on the line 3-3, Fig. 2, showing the position of the parts before the nut is screwed home. Fig. 4 is a, view similar to Fig. 3, showing the nut screwed home. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of one form of the washer. Fig. 6 is a view of a modification, and Fig. 7 is a view of a second modification,

Referring the embodiment of the invention illustrated. in Figs, 1 to 5 in lu ive, a

- Application fifldi'March 28,1914; seams.was

725,600,: p i i same-andlthebolt aperture 8, are the locking specificationof Letters Patent. Pafe f djJ a -1,- 19 1 8 The bolt'carries manta-4; and between the j nut and the fish plate is interposed myjim- ,This washer 7 comprises a" proved washer 5. I U curved body member 6, theout'er. surface "of wh'ich'is' convex, and the inner surface concave,"as showni. The centralportion of the ency of the washer as a whole. Extending parallel with the sidesj7''l, and b'etweenjthe shoulders9 9'which may befof desired shape, but arepreferably round as here shown. Theiheight of these shoulders and I the curva ture offlthe body portion is such j" that the" nutis being screwed down, the central' portion the'reofhvill contact first withthewasher body along the line1010. 1

tom thereof willvcome in eontacttwith',"and

ride over the locking ribs 9'9," until finally y when the; nut isfscrewedhomathe washer will be flattened "out as indicated Fig. 4,"

and then'ut will lie between the locking shoulders 9 9, which holds it securely As the nut is screwed farther home, the botin thickness, there will be little tendency of these side portions to crack off, as is frequently found to be the-case with resilient washers at present in use.

It is found in practice that when the looking shoulders extend continuously across the breadth of the washer as shown in Fig. 5, the lower edges of the nut that first come into contact with the shoulders when the nut is being screwed home, become worn or abraded and also those lower edges of the nut which are last to leave the shoulders when the nut is being screwed home, also become worn, by reason of the fact that these edges snap downofi' the looking ri'bs'as the side faces of the nut are turned. into alinement with the locking ribs. To prevent such wear of the nut, I cut away portions of the locking shoulders 9. In Fig. 6, these shoulders are cut away at the central portions 11 only, to afford clearance for the corners of the nut for the greater part of their travel over these shoulders. It is obvious, however, that when the nut is finally turned into alinement with the shoulders, the portions of the ribs 9 either side of the recesses 11 w ll securely hold the nut in locked position. In order to facilitate the turning of the nut to locked position, one end: of each of the notches 11 is beveled as at 12, while the opposite ends 13 may be more or less abrupt. Furthermore, in order to reduce the wear on what for convenience-'I'term the rear edges of the nut when unscrewed, the abrupt ends 13 of the notches 11 are cut back some distance from the longitudinal center of the rib 9, so that the corners of the nut shall have ridden approximately free of the ribs before they encounter the abrupt shoulderl3. i I g V In the modified form of the locking washer shown in Fig. 7, diagonally opposite extremities of each of the ribs 9 are shown as cut away entirely, leaving the face of the washer substantially clear at the points 1414:. The portions of the ribs 9 remaining however, are sufficient to lock the nut in secured position for most practical purposes.

The inner ends of these ribs are beveled as details of construction and arrangements of parts within the scope of the appended claims.

IVhat I claim is:

1. A combined nut lock and washer having a curved body portion, the centralpart of which is of uniform thickness throughout, having opposite side edges reduced in said ribs normally lie below the plane of the highest part thereof so that the under side of the: nut will contact first-with the transverse central line ofthe washer before engaging .the locking shoulders, the curvature of the washer being such that the inner side thereof will lie flat against the part to be clamped when the nut is screwed home.

2. A combined nut lock and washer comprising a plate having its central portion forming a nut seat of uniform thickness, and having opposite slde edges reduced 1n thlckness said washer havlng locklng shoulders upon either side of the bolt receiving aperture, parallel with the reduced edges of the washer, the curvature of the nut seat'beingsuch that the said ribsnormally lie below the plane of the highest part thereof so that the bottom of the nut will first contact there-. with along a transverse line parallel with i the locking shoulders, as the nut is being screwed home, and the curvature V of the under side of the washer being such that said side will lie flat against the part to be secured when the nut is screwed home.

In testimony whereof I, the said FRANK E. SPENCER, have hereunto set my hand.

I FRANK E. SPENCER. Witnesses v JoHN F. WILL, 7 JOHN R. KELLER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained 'for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of .Batents, Washington, D. C. 

